Apparatus for deoxidizing



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H. A.. J ONESe APPARATUS PoR DROXIDIZING, MRLTING, AND RUDDLING IRON oRRs PaJtentedDemZQ, 1891x (No Modl.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

y H. A. JONES. APPARATUS POR DBOXIDIZING,MBLTING. AND PUDDLING IRON DRES. N0.v466,045. Patented Dec. 29,' 1891.

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H. A.-J0NEs. APPARATUS POR DBOXIDIZING, MELTING, AND PUDDLING IRON DRES.

No. 466,045. Patented Dec. 29, 1891.

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UNITED STATES 'PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY ANVYL JONES, OF BROOKLYN, NEV YORK.

APPARATUS FOR DEOXIDIZING, MELTING, AND PUDDLING IRON ORES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 466,045, dated December 29, 1891. Application filed January 8, 1889. Renewed .Tune 18, 1891. Serial No. 396.664. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY ANWYL JONES, of Brooklyn,in the county of Kings and State 4of New York, have invented an Improvement in Apparatus for Deoxidizing, Melting, and Puddling Iron Orcs, of which the following is a specification.

ln deoxidizing -furnaces heretofore constructed the ore, in a ground or finely-divided condition, has been subjected to the action of carbon in the presence of heat for removing the oxygen previous to the melting or welding operation; but the' ore is liable to become caked or packed in the vertical receptacles in consequence of the weight of the column of pulverized ore, and it is difficult to apply the proper degree of heat to such materials or to render the action of the heat uniform on all portions of the iron ore, and as the carbon is lighter than the ore the latter is liable to fall the most rapidly, so that the mixture of carbon and ore does not remain uniform. In my presentinvention the oxide of iron in a ground or broken condition is mixed with carbon in the proper proportion and passes down through a chamber which is zigzag or waving in its contour, so that the ore and carbon are more or less agitated and commingled as they i pass along the inclines and bends in the chamber, the bottom of the materials in one incline becoming the top on the next incline, and they are exposed to a nearly uniform heat from gas-burners applied to the outer surfaces of the chamber, and in consequence of the zigzag shape of the chambers the weight of the material that is being operated upon does not rest in a vertical column, but it rests upon the alternate oppositely-inclined surfaces, thus preventing the packing of the ore and carbon and insuring a proper and uniform feed, and the deoxidized ore and carbon pass down into the hopper, from which they are discharged periodically into the furnace,

the hearth of which is made to oscillate, so

that the contents thereof are rolled around upon the hearthautomatically, and as the carbon is consumed by the blast the particles of iron are heated to a melting or welding condition and adhere together to form the ball, which is subsequently removed to the hammer or rolls, by which it is worked, as usual.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a Vertical section ofthe deoXidizing-furnace. Fig. 2is a vertical section, in larger size, of the lower portion of the deoxidizing-chambers and gasburners for heating the same. Fig. 3 is a sectional plan at the line :c a: of Fig. 2, and Fig. 4 isa vert-ical section of the lower part of the deoxidizing-chambers at right angles to Fig. l.

Each deoXidizing-chaniber is made of two zigzag or compound curved plates A B, supported at their vertical edges in a suitable brick-work or other supports C, and thereby kept at a proper distance apart for the ore to pass down through the space A. These deoxidizing-chambers are distant one from the other the proper space for the introduction of the gas-burners and the chambers through which the gas passes to the burners. The gas-chambers D are preferably of cast-iron having a narrow space for the gas, and these chambers are of a zigzag or undulating shape corresponding to the cont-our of the deoxidizing-chambers, so as to occupy the space midway between two 'of such deoxidizingchambers or to be at the corresponding dis-- tance outside of the outer deoxidizing-chambers and such deoxidizing-chambers are placed together in groups. Each of the gasburners E is provided with a jet-pipe 2, from which the gas issues, the funnel or case 3, into which the air is allowed to pass near the base of the funnel'and 'adjacent to the jet-pipe, and apiece ofgauze 4t or plate of perforated metal, through which the commingled air vand gas pass and are ignited, so that the flames from the burners impinge against the sides of the deoxidizing-chambers to heat the same. It is preferable to form the funnels 3 with or connect them to the vertical zigzag frames F lbetween the gas-chambers D and the deoXidizing-chambers, and to make these frames F in two parts, so that the gauze 4. may be slipped in between one part of the frame and the other, thereby allowing for the removal of the gauze or perforated plates endwise out from between the double portions of the zigzagframes, so as to clean such gauze or to replace the same as may become necessary from time to time, and it is to be understood that the funnels, jets, and gauze and perforated plates are to be located in such a manner that the IOO to the pipes and burners.

heat of the flames as they burn between the gauze and the deoxidizing-chambers will act uniformly, or nearly so, upon the outer surfaces of both the plates A and B, so as to heat the same uniformly throughout or with the proper degree of heat for performing the deoxidizing operation upon the ore in the presence ot the carbon as such ore and carbon slide or move down progressively between the plates A and B in the zigzag deoxidizingchambers. In consequence of mixing air with the gas in the proper proportion the tiame will be of a blue color and intense in its heat. The proportion of air and gas may he varied. The burners may be moved nearer to or farther from the deoxidizingchambers, the bolts 30 in slots in the plateshas seen in Fi'. 3, allowing for this adjustment. It is new to be understood that any desired number of these deoXidizing-chambers and their gasburners for heating the same may be made use of. I have represented in the drawings two groups of such deoxidizingchambers, one at each side of the central wall or partition G, and there are to be side walls G and end walls G2, and in the walls G and C there are openings at the'proper places for withdrawing or inserting the strips of gauze or perforated plates t and for giving access Atmospheric air is admitted at G5 and passes up through openings at G4 into the spaces between the deoxidizing-chambers bounded by the walls G G G2, and the products of combustion pass out laterally from the opening I-l. The carbon and oxide of iron in the Iproper coinminuted proportion is placed in the hopper I, which may have at the bottom a feeding slide or valve for shutting off the supply, if desired, and the bottom of this hopper opens through the top plateor cover I of the case containing the deoXidizing-chambers and burners, and there are guide conduits or tubes 6 extending from the base of the hopper to the upper ends of the respective deoxidizing* chambers, so that the ore and carbon are fed automatically into these chambers from time to time as required. The lower ends of these deoXidizing-chambers are closed,except where the openings 7 pass away to the hopper K, and there is a sliding valve 8 and a screw and nut 9 by which the same is moved for open# ing and closing the openings 7, so that when such slide-valve is open the deoxidizing ore and carbon pass down into the hopper K, and when such slide is closed the materials within the deoxidizing chambers are retained in place. It will be seen that this hopper K is within an air-chamber, to which air is admitted by the opening Air passes up between the deoxidizingcharnbers to promote a perfeet combustion of the gas made use of in heating such chambers, and the heat becomes uniform, or nearly so, in its action upon the exterior of the deoxidizing-chambers, or the heating can be concentrated, more or less, according to the supply-cocks that regulate the discharge of the gas to the respective jet-pipes 2. I remark that it is generally preferable to mix atmospheric air with the gas previous to passing the same into the zigzag chambers D, and for this purpose a holder L is to be provided with pipes 11, passing to the respective gas-chambers D, and into which holder air and gas are admitted under suficient pressure to cause them to commingle intimately as they pass into such gasholder. Hence the gas and air will not only be intimately commingled when it reaches the chambers D, but such chambers D will become highly heated by being within the space between one deoxidizing-chamber and the next and more or less exposed to the heated gases passing away from the respective burners.

Beneath the hopper K and within a suitable inclosure of tire-brick is the reverberatory furnace. M represents a iue leading in the heating-flame from atire or from suitable gasburners; N, the arch of the furnace, and P and Q the sides of such furnaces. There is an opening and door at R to give access for removing the ball or mass of melted or partially-welded iron, and at S is a flue passing to the chimney T.

In the center part of the furnace and in the hearth portion thereof is a circular opening for the reception of the automatic oscillating hearth U, which hearth is made of the casting l2 in the form of a circular coneaved pan with a lining of graphite or other refractory material made in four or more sections, the edges of the sections being radial or rnearly so and having central downward projections 14, that pass into a central opening in the pan 12. These sectional linings are held into the pan by a luting of tire-clay or other material, which also unites one rmly to the other.

At the edges of the pan 12 the trunnions l5 project. I prefer to use four of these trunnions, and they are received into vertical hollow columns 1G, that are supported in a suitable frame-work IV. The litters 17 support the trunnions, and these litters are to be actuated in succession by any suitable means to give an oscillating movement to the hearth, as set forth in my application, Serial No. 295,802, January 8, 1889.

It is to be understood that the valve or slide 8 at the bottom of the hopper K is to be withdrawn periodically in order that the contents of the hopper K may fall directly through the reverberatory furnace upon the automatic oscillatin g hearth and become highly heated by the action of the ame upon the iron and the carbon. The contents of the hopper K may be sufncient for the formation of one puddlers ball,or the contents of the hopper may be discharged two or more timesv in forming such ball.

I do not herein lay claim to the method of forming a pnddlers ball by aceretions to the ball of iron introduced into a reverberatory furnace, as the same forms the subject of my IOO tro'

aforesaid application, Serial No. 295,802, of like date herewith.

I claim as my inventionl. The combination, with the vertical ranges of deoXidizing-chambers, of intermediate gassupply chambers, branch pipes and funnels within which the air and gas are mixed, and gauze or perforated plates through which the air and gas pass to the llame, the ilame being directed upon the exterior surface of the deoXidizing-chambers, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with the Vertical ranges of deoxidizing-chambers, each composed of zigzag or undulating plates, of gas-burners, gauze or perforated plates through which the mixed air and gas pass to the Hamel, and twopart frames in which the gauze or perforated plates are supported and from which they may be removed, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, in a deoxidizing apparatus, of a range of vertical chambers or -retorts having undulating or zigzag plates to agitato the material as it descends, gas-chambers between the vertical deoXidizing-chambers and burners receiving gas from such chambers and directing the flame against the nndulations, substantially as specified.

Signed by me this 4th day of January, 1889.

HENRY ANWYL JONES. Witnesses:

GEO. T. PINCKNEY, WILLIAM G. MoTr. 

